Medicare Spending per Beneficiary (CMS)

Original Medicare spending per fee-for-service beneficiary in Georgia and its counties, standardized and actual, by type of service.

Source: Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), Medicare Geographic Variation - by National, State & County, data.cms.gov dataset 6219697b-8f6c-4164-bed4-cd9317c58ebc, 2014-2024 release (2014-2024 Original Medicare Geographic Variation Public Use File.csv)
Year coverage: 2014–2024
Updated: annual
Version: 1.0.0
Schema hash: d89ae00c201b

Detail levels available

StateCounty · default

Overview

How much Original Medicare (fee-for-service) pays for the care of beneficiaries living in Georgia and each of its 159 counties, per beneficiary and in total, for all care and by type of service (hospital inpatient and outpatient, skilled nursing, home health, hospice, physician visits, procedures, tests, imaging, equipment, dialysis and more), from CMS's Medicare Geographic Variation data. The headline is standardized spending per beneficiary, with geographic price differences removed so places compare on the care used: statewide $9,281 in 2014 and $12,393 in 2024 (actual $12,789), and $9,393-$29,853 across counties in 2024. Per Original Medicare beneficiary, not per Medicare enrollee: Medicare Advantage enrollees are not covered. Calendar years 2014-2024; Georgia also by age (under 65, 65 and over).

Row grain: One row per year, county_fips, tract_geoid, age_bracket, service.

Key metric

standardized_payment_per_capita — Standardized Medicare Spending per Beneficiary (currency)

The single headline value most answers want.

JSON schema →Data contract (YAML) →

Variables

Every column in the fact table. The code is the exact field name the API returns.

Column	Type	Unit	Range	Null?	Description
`year`Year	integer	—	—	no	Calendar year of service (claims by date of service, January to December), 2014-2024 (CMS's 2014-2024 release). Full description▾ Calendar year of service (claims by date of service, January to December), 2014-2024 (CMS's 2014-2024 release).
`county_fips`County FIPS	string	—	—	yes	5-digit county FIPS code of the beneficiaries' residence (CMS BENE_GEO_CD); NULL on the Georgia state row. CMS's GA-UNKNOWN (13000) is left out. Full description▾ 5-digit county FIPS code of the beneficiaries' residence (CMS BENE_GEO_CD); NULL on the Georgia state row. CMS's GA-UNKNOWN (13000) is left out. Joins counties; adds its label columns.
`tract_geoid`Tract GEOID	string	—	—	yes	Always NULL: CMS publishes state and county figures only. Kept for the health domain's standard key shape. Full description▾ Always NULL: CMS publishes state and county figures only. Kept for the health domain's standard key shape. Joins tracts; adds its label columns.
`age_bracket`Age Bracket	string	—	—	no	'all' = every beneficiary; 'under_65' / '65_plus' (Georgia only). Full description▾ Beneficiary age group (CMS BENE_AGE_LVL): 'all' (every age), 'under_65' (entitled by disability or end-stage renal disease) and '65_plus'. CMS publishes the two brackets for Georgia only; county rows are 'all'. The brackets partition 'all' (beneficiary counts exactly, dollar amounts within CMS's rounding). Pin 'all' to compare places. 3 allowed values▾ `all — total / aggregate` `under_65` `65_plus`
`service`Service	string	—	—	no	Type of service ('all' = total Medicare spending). Full description▾ Type of service Medicare paid for: 'all' (every service, CMS's TOT_MDCR_* totals), 'inpatient' (hospital inpatient stays: acute care hospitals paid under the IPPS, critical access hospitals, inpatient psychiatric facilities and other inpatient Part A services); 'outpatient' (hospital outpatient department services (OPPS hospitals and critical access hospital outpatient departments); outpatient dialysis facilities are their own category); 'ambulatory_surgery_center' (ambulatory surgery center services); 'skilled_nursing_facility' (post-acute skilled nursing facility stays); 'inpatient_rehabilitation_facility' (inpatient rehabilitation facility stays); 'long_term_care_hospital' (long-term care hospital stays); 'home_health' (home health agency services); 'hospice' (hospice care); 'evaluation_and_management' (evaluation and management visits by physicians and other practitioners (office, hospital, nursing facility, emergency department and other E&M services; RBCS)); 'procedures' (procedures billed by physicians and other practitioners, anesthesia included (RBCS)); 'tests' (laboratory and other tests (RBCS)); 'imaging' (imaging: CT, MRI, nuclear medicine, ultrasound, X-ray (RBCS)); 'durable_medical_equipment' (durable medical equipment, supplies, oxygen, orthotics and drugs given through DME (RBCS)); 'outpatient_dialysis_facility' (outpatient dialysis facility services); 'fqhc_and_rural_health_clinic' (federally qualified health center and rural health clinic visits); 'ambulance' (ambulance services); 'treatments' (Part B treatments: chemotherapy, other injections and infusions, radiation oncology, physician dialysis services, and physical, occupational and speech therapy (RBCS)); and 'other_part_b_services' (other Part B services that fit no category above (RBCS 'Other': spinal manipulation, vision, hearing and speech services); CMS publishes only its amounts). The 18 services other than 'all' do not overlap and add up to 'all'; a suppressed service is never filled in as 'all' minus the others. 19 allowed values▾ `all — total / aggregate` `inpatient` `outpatient` `ambulatory_surgery_center` `skilled_nursing_facility` `inpatient_rehabilitation_facility` `long_term_care_hospital` `home_health` `hospice` `evaluation_and_management` `procedures` `tests` `imaging` `durable_medical_equipment` `outpatient_dialysis_facility` `fqhc_and_rural_health_clinic` `ambulance` `treatments` `other_part_b_services`
`standardized_payment_per_capita`Standardized Medicare Spending per Beneficiary	number	currency	—	yes	Original Medicare spending per fee-for-service beneficiary, with geographic price differences removed (dollars). Full description▾ Medicare payment per beneficiary for the service in the year, in dollars, standardized: CMS removes geographic differences in Medicare's payment rates (local wages and other input prices) and the extra payments teaching and safety-net hospitals receive, so places compare on the care used, not on prices; per Original Medicare beneficiary with Parts A and B, counted for each month entitled (num_om_beneficiaries), not per Medicare enrollee or resident (CMS <SERVICE>_MDCR_STDZD_PYMT_PC; TOT_MDCR_STDZD_PYMT_PC on 'all' rows). Equals standardized_payment_amount / num_om_beneficiaries. For several places pool as SUM(standardized_payment_amount) / SUM(num_om_beneficiaries), never an average. On 'other_part_b_services' rows it is our calculation, CMS's formula applied to the published amount.
`actual_payment_per_capita`Actual Medicare Spending per Beneficiary	number	currency	—	yes	Medicare payment per beneficiary, in dollars, actual: what Medicare paid, at the place's own payment rates; per Original Medicare beneficiary with Parts A and B, counted for each month entitled (num_om_beneficiaries), not per Medicare enrollee or resident (CMS <SERVICE>_MDCR_PYMT_PC). Equals actual_payment_amount / num_om_beneficiaries; pool as SUM(actual_payment_amount) / SUM(num_om_beneficiaries). On 'other_part_b_services' rows it is our calculation, CMS's formula applied to the published amount. Full description▾ Medicare payment per beneficiary, in dollars, actual: what Medicare paid, at the place's own payment rates; per Original Medicare beneficiary with Parts A and B, counted for each month entitled (num_om_beneficiaries), not per Medicare enrollee or resident (CMS <SERVICE>_MDCR_PYMT_PC). Equals actual_payment_amount / num_om_beneficiaries; pool as SUM(actual_payment_amount) / SUM(num_om_beneficiaries). On 'other_part_b_services' rows it is our calculation, CMS's formula applied to the published amount.
`standardized_payment_amount`Standardized Medicare Spending (Total)	number	currency	—	yes	Total Medicare payment for the place's Original Medicare beneficiaries' care of this type in the year, in dollars, standardized: CMS removes geographic differences in Medicare's payment rates (local wages and other input prices) and the extra payments teaching and safety-net hospitals receive, so places compare on the care used, not on prices (CMS <SERVICE>_MDCR_STDZD_PYMT_AMT). The services add up to 'all'. Never add it to the actual amount. Full description▾ Total Medicare payment for the place's Original Medicare beneficiaries' care of this type in the year, in dollars, standardized: CMS removes geographic differences in Medicare's payment rates (local wages and other input prices) and the extra payments teaching and safety-net hospitals receive, so places compare on the care used, not on prices (CMS <SERVICE>_MDCR_STDZD_PYMT_AMT). The services add up to 'all'. Never add it to the actual amount.
`actual_payment_amount`Actual Medicare Spending (Total)	number	currency	—	yes	Total Medicare payment for the place's Original Medicare beneficiaries' care of this type in the year, in dollars, actual: what Medicare paid, at the place's own payment rates (CMS <SERVICE>_MDCR_PYMT_AMT). Includes payments CMS routed to accountable care organizations instead of providers (from 2017). The services add up to 'all'. Full description▾ Total Medicare payment for the place's Original Medicare beneficiaries' care of this type in the year, in dollars, actual: what Medicare paid, at the place's own payment rates (CMS <SERVICE>_MDCR_PYMT_AMT). Includes payments CMS routed to accountable care organizations instead of providers (from 2017). The services add up to 'all'.
`pct_of_total_standardized_payment`Share of Standardized Spending	number	proportion	—	yes	The service's share of the place's total standardized Original Medicare payment, 0-1 (0.30 = 30%; CMS <SERVICE>_MDCR_STDZD_PYMT_PCT, amount / the all-services amount). 1 on 'all' rows. On 'other_part_b_services' rows it is our calculation, CMS's formula applied to the published amount. Full description▾ The service's share of the place's total standardized Original Medicare payment, 0-1 (0.30 = 30%; CMS <SERVICE>_MDCR_STDZD_PYMT_PCT, amount / the all-services amount). 1 on 'all' rows. On 'other_part_b_services' rows it is our calculation, CMS's formula applied to the published amount.
`pct_of_total_actual_payment`Share of Actual Spending	number	proportion	—	yes	The service's share of the place's total actual Original Medicare payment, 0-1 (CMS <SERVICE>_MDCR_PYMT_PCT). 1 on 'all' rows. On 'other_part_b_services' rows it is our calculation, CMS's formula applied to the published amount. Full description▾ The service's share of the place's total actual Original Medicare payment, 0-1 (CMS <SERVICE>_MDCR_PYMT_PCT). 1 on 'all' rows. On 'other_part_b_services' rows it is our calculation, CMS's formula applied to the published amount.
`standardized_payment_per_user`Standardized Medicare Spending per User	number	currency	—	yes	Medicare payment per Original Medicare (fee-for-service) beneficiary who used the service (not Medicare Advantage enrollees), in dollars, standardized: CMS removes geographic differences in Medicare's payment rates (local wages and other input prices) and the extra payments teaching and safety-net hospitals receive, so places compare on the care used, not on prices (CMS <SERVICE>_MDCR_STDZD_PYMT_PER_USER; FQHC_RHC_MDCR_STDZD_PYMT_PU). The amount divided by the service's users, not by all beneficiaries, so it is always at least the per-capita figure. Users are not in this table: pool as SUM(amount) / SUM(users), never an average. Where no beneficiary used the service CMS publishes 0 per user; those cells are NULL here, since an average over nobody is undefined (the amount and per-capita zeros there are kept). Full description▾ Medicare payment per Original Medicare (fee-for-service) beneficiary who used the service (not Medicare Advantage enrollees), in dollars, standardized: CMS removes geographic differences in Medicare's payment rates (local wages and other input prices) and the extra payments teaching and safety-net hospitals receive, so places compare on the care used, not on prices (CMS <SERVICE>_MDCR_STDZD_PYMT_PER_USER; FQHC_RHC_MDCR_STDZD_PYMT_PU). The amount divided by the service's users, not by all beneficiaries, so it is always at least the per-capita figure. Users are not in this table: pool as SUM(amount) / SUM(users), never an average. Where no beneficiary used the service CMS publishes 0 per user; those cells are NULL here, since an average over nobody is undefined (the amount and per-capita zeros there are kept).
`actual_payment_per_user`Actual Medicare Spending per User	number	currency	—	yes	Medicare payment per Original Medicare (fee-for-service) beneficiary who used the service (not Medicare Advantage enrollees), in dollars, actual: what Medicare paid, at the place's own payment rates (CMS <SERVICE>_MDCR_PYMT_PER_USER). Where no beneficiary used the service CMS publishes 0 per user; those cells are NULL here, since an average over nobody is undefined (the amount and per-capita zeros there are kept). Full description▾ Medicare payment per Original Medicare (fee-for-service) beneficiary who used the service (not Medicare Advantage enrollees), in dollars, actual: what Medicare paid, at the place's own payment rates (CMS <SERVICE>_MDCR_PYMT_PER_USER). Where no beneficiary used the service CMS publishes 0 per user; those cells are NULL here, since an average over nobody is undefined (the amount and per-capita zeros there are kept).
`num_om_beneficiaries`Original Medicare Beneficiaries	integer	count	—	yes	Original Medicare (fee-for-service) beneficiaries living in the place: Part A, Part B and Original Medicare for every month they were entitled, new enrollees and people who died during the year included (CMS BENES_OM_CNT). Not every Medicare beneficiary: Medicare Advantage enrollees and people with Part A or B alone are left out. The denominator of every per-capita figure here. The same count repeats on every service row of a place and year: never add it across services. Full description▾ Original Medicare (fee-for-service) beneficiaries living in the place: Part A, Part B and Original Medicare for every month they were entitled, new enrollees and people who died during the year included (CMS BENES_OM_CNT). Not every Medicare beneficiary: Medicare Advantage enrollees and people with Part A or B alone are left out. The denominator of every per-capita figure here. The same count repeats on every service row of a place and year: never add it across services.

Filters

Query parameters the fact endpoint accepts. Comma-separated values are OR within a parameter; multiple parameters AND together.

Parameter	Kind	Allowed values	Notes
`year`	year_exact	any value	—
`year_min`	year_range	any value	—
`year_max`	year_range	any value	—
`detail`	detail	`countiesstates`	enum-enforced, default: counties
`county_fips`	foreign_key	any value	multi-value
`tract_geoid`	foreign_key	any value	multi-value
`age_bracket`	categorical	`allunder_6565_plus`	multi-value, enum-enforced
`service`	categorical	19 allowed values▾ `all` `inpatient` `outpatient` `ambulatory_surgery_center` `skilled_nursing_facility` `inpatient_rehabilitation_facility` `long_term_care_hospital` `home_health` `hospice` `evaluation_and_management` `procedures` `tests` `imaging` `durable_medical_equipment` `outpatient_dialysis_facility` `fqhc_and_rural_health_clinic` `ambulance` `treatments` `other_part_b_services`	multi-value, enum-enforced

Example requests

Run these against the base URL — they return live data.

All rows (first page), counties level

curl "https://georgiacivicdata.org/api/v1/health/medicare_spending_per_capita"

counties data for 2024

curl "https://georgiacivicdata.org/api/v1/health/medicare_spending_per_capita?year=2024"

Filtered to age_bracket = under_65 for 2024

curl "https://georgiacivicdata.org/api/v1/health/medicare_spending_per_capita?year=2024&age_bracket=under_65"

One county (FIPS 13121), 2024

curl "https://georgiacivicdata.org/api/v1/health/medicare_spending_per_capita?county_fips=13121&year=2024&detail=counties"

Download 2024 as CSV

curl "https://georgiacivicdata.org/api/v1/health/medicare_spending_per_capita?year=2024&format=csv"

Notes & limitations

NULL handling

Suppressed cells (values the source withholds, usually for a group too small to report) are NULL, never zero.
Zero is a real, reported value.

Limitations

Original Medicare (fee-for-service) only: beneficiaries in Original Medicare Parts A and B, counted for each month entitled, not all enrollees. In 2024 those beneficiaries were 35% of Georgia's Medicare beneficiaries and 20-49% of each county's (Medicare Advantage up to 76%, Clayton County), so county figures can describe a fee-for-service minority. Standardized figures remove geographic price differences; actual is what Medicare paid. Figures on under 11 users are suppressed (NULL). Per-capita figures divide by those beneficiaries (num_om_beneficiaries), not by all Medicare enrollees or residents. Who is covered: CMS counts beneficiaries with Part A, Part B and Original Medicare for every month they were entitled (num_om_beneficiaries), new enrollees and people who died during the year included; anyone in Medicare Advantage at any point in the year, or with Part A or Part B alone, is left out. CMS suppresses figures built on fewer than 11 beneficiaries or service users ('*'); they are NULL here and never filled in from other figures. Per-user payment is NULL where no beneficiary used the service (CMS shows 0 over zero users), and on the 'all' and 'other_part_b_services' rows, which CMS publishes no per-user figure for. For 'other_part_b_services' CMS publishes only the amounts: its per capita and share are our calculation (amount / num_om_beneficiaries; amount / the all-services amount), CMS's own formulas for the other services; the 'all' row's share is 1 by definition. Standardized figures adjust for prices only (CMS's dictionary: adjusted for geographic differences in payment rates; the file has no risk-adjusted figure), so places with sicker or older beneficiaries still spend more per capita. Georgia's row is CMS's own figure, not a sum of the county rows: it also counts the handful of beneficiaries CMS places in no county (GA-UNKNOWN), so the 159 counties need not add up to it exactly. CMS's GA-UNKNOWN row (13000), beneficiaries placed in no county, is fully suppressed and left out. One source inconsistency is served as published: in 2024 the standardized service amounts of Washington County (13303) add to $42,494 less than CMS's standardized total, so its shares add to slightly under 1. Payments CMS routed to accountable care organizations instead of providers (its Population-Based Payment reduction, from 2017) are already inside actual payment and are not shown separately. age_bracket 'under_65' (beneficiaries entitled by disability or end-stage renal disease) and '65_plus' exist for Georgia only; county rows are 'all'. From CMS's 2014-2024 release (file updated 2026-04-29); each release restates earlier years, so the figures here are replaced when the data is refreshed. tract_geoid is always NULL.